In this travel guide to Abkhazia you will find:

Get a copy of my Travel Guide to Georgia

This is just one region of Georgia, so if you really want to get deeper into the country, I strongly recommend you get my guidebook, as it contains several itineraries, all my personal travel tips and in-depth guides to 12 different regions.

Introduction to visiting the Republic of Abkhazia

Important – Before you read, please note that I don’t intend to get into politics. Seriously, I am not on any side but I am just a traveler who wants to show the beauty of Abkhazia in the same way that I have been showing other places in Georgia. It is not my business to claim whether Abkhazia is a republic or not and if I say it, it is because this is how Abkhazians say it, not because I care about it. I don’t care who is right but I just want to show the world what my eyes saw from a traveling perspective.

In 1992, after the Soviet Union’s dissolution, Georgia was planning to abolish the Soviet-era constitution and restoring the 1921 Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Georgia.

As a response, in fear of losing their autonomy in favor of Georgia, Abkhazia declared independence unilaterally.

As a consequence, the Georgian army invaded Abkhazia, which turned into a bloody war but, with the help of different Caucasian militias from the south of Russia, Georgia was defeated by Abkhazia.

Abkhazia was in the hands of the Abkhazians, and the ethnic Georgians, who were nearly half of the total population, were either killed or forced to flee the country and that is the reason why there are so many abandoned buildings.

After a couple of years, Abkhazia was self-proclaimed an independent Republic.

However, nobody in the international community recognized it, so Abkhazia went through a long period of autarchic darkness.

It was only in 2008, after the Georgian-Russian war, that Russia recognized it as a country and decided to back them up economically, in exchange for military presence, among other things I believe.

Today, it is only recognized by a small bunch of countries which, besides Russia, includes Venezuela, Nicaragua, Syria and a few Pacific Islands.

The flags from these countries are waving in the center of the city.

As I said, I don’t want to enter into politics but, regardless of whether they have the right to be independent or not, from a traveling perspective, traveling to Abkhazia feels like being in a different country:

There is a border, you need a country visa, they use the Russian Rubles, cars have an Abkhazian license place, the architecture is different and, as per the people, the culture is slightly different and they speak a distinct language named Abkazh, a Caucasian language that has nothing to do with Georgian.

This was a very simple summary so, if you want to know more about Abkhazia, I strongly recommend you to read Under Siege: Inter-ethnic relations in Abkhazia, one of the very few good books fully dedicated to Abkhazia – Click here to check prices on Amazon

Inside an abandoned building in Sukhumi – Visit Abkhazia

How to get a visa to Abkhazia

Calm down.

Many travelers seem to be particularly overwhelmed about getting a visa to visit Abkhazia, but you just need to make an easy online application and cross an easy border, that’s it.

You can apply through the official website. Just fill out the application and send them a hard copy of your passport, as stated. You don’t need to pay anything, for now.

After 5 working days, they will email you a security clearance which you need to show at the border. Remember to print several copies, as either Georgian, Russian or Abkhazian authorities may keep one.

Important –The security clearance is not a visa but just the key to enter Abkhazia. Once you are in Abkhazia, you need to pick up your visa at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Sukhumi, within 2-3 days of your arrival. The visa price depends on the length of your stay: I stayed 1 week and paid 350RB (5USD). By the way, you can pay by credit card. This is the location: 42.999895, 41.018142.

How to travel to Abkhazia from Georgia

From Tbilisi, there is a night train and morning one. The morning train leaves at 8am and arrives at 1:45pm, whereas the night train arrives at 6-7am.

If you come in the morning, the border will be less busy but it doesn’t open until 8-10am, so you may have to wait for a bit.

Buy your tickets a few days in advance. I bought them online on matarebeli.ge, but you can also get them at the station in Tbilisi.

The train journey to Zugdidi is a very touristic route, as it is the main getaway to Mestia, so the train is packed with tourists, but nobody was traveling to Abkhazia other than me.

The border is less than 10km away. I went to the main bus station in Zugdidi and didn’t find a marshrutka (but there should be one because I took it on the way back), so I jumped into a taxi and paid 8GEL (1.80USD).

You need to tell the guy granitsa, which means border in Russian.

A ceasefire monument you can find in no man’s land. The question is: who paid for it, Abkhazia or Georgia? – can you travel to Abkhazia

A few kilometers of no man’s land – You need to walk 2 or 3km and cross the bridge that goes over the Enguri river.

Abkhazian border – It took me 30 minutes.

Russian checkpoint – Despite not even being their country, the Russians authorities are the most annoying. It took me two hours to cross it, not only because it was slower but because they took me to a different room and ask loads of questions about my previous trip to Iran.

After the Russian checkpoint, congratulations.

You are officially in the unrecognized Republic of Abkhazia.

If you crossed in the morning, you will find marshrutkas that go straight to Sukhumi.

Otherwise, you will first need to go to Gale (50RB) and then take a second marshrutka to Sukhumi (200RB).

Important information for those coming from Russia – The Russian border is open but you can’t enter from Russia and leave through Georgia, basically because Georgia doesn’t recognize that border, so you won’t be allowed to get in. On the other hand, if you enter Abkhazia through Georgia, you are technically allowed to enter Russia (as long as you have a valid visa) but, if you ever try to come back to Georgia, you may be banned from entering the country or pay a fine.

Welcome to the Republic of Abkhazia – Border – How to travel to Abkhazia

Is it safe to travel to Abkhazia?

Tell any Georgian that you want to travel to Abkhazia and they will freak out and tell you that you are completely nuts.

Their opinion is, of course, a little bit biased but we can’t forget that the region is well-known for its crime, especially the southern part, close to the border with Zugdidi, around Gale.

I actually know two cases of people who got robbed there in summer 2018. One was an acquaintance of me and the other was the guys from Kathmandu and Beyond. Read their story here.

The south of Abkhazia used to have the largest population of Georgians and, since all of them left, here you find more abandoned buildings than anywhere else, so robbing tourists is a way to fight their misery.

Don’t be afraid of visiting the south though.

You can go there and explore the different towns during the day, no problem, but if you decide to explore some of the abandoned factories outside, go with a local or a big group.

The rest of the country (my suggested itinerary), however, is safe and everybody is friendly and kind. I remember sitting in a café for breakfast when some random people that were next to me paid for my meal, and I had barely talked to them.

Friendly Abkhazians playing backgammon, somewhere in Sukhumi – Is it safe to travel to Abkhazia

There is no Consulate representation

On the other hand, remember that, in Abkhazia, there is no embassy representation, so if you get into trouble, losing your passport, for example, I don’t know what you could do. Just be aware of this.

Travel Insurance for Abkhazia

If the unlikely happened to you, you will be alone, so I strongly recommend you buy specific travel insurance for Abkhazia.

The problem is that most companies won’t cover travel in Abkhazia because it is an unrecognized territory.

The one which does is IATI Insurance, a very good company that offers loads of different plans, including budget plans for backpackers.

If you select Georgia (or Europe), you will be covered for travel in Abkhazia.

Important information about money when you travel in Abkhazia

Don’t bring Georgian Laris – Except in Gale, you won’t be able to exchange your Laris, so it is better to bring Rubles. You can get them anywhere in Tbilisi.

ATMs – Unlike what you may read in other blogs, most ATMs do accept international credit cards.

How much does it cost to travel to Abkhazia? – The food in Abkhazia is substantially more expensive than Georgia but accommodation is very cheap:

Breakfast – 300RB (4.50USD)

Plate of khinkalis – 250RB (23.80USD)

Beer – 100RB (1.50USD)

Coffee – 80RB (1.20USD)

Budget accommodation – From 6USD for a private room

Some fruits in Abkhazia are crazy expensive – Travel in Abkhazia

Places to visit in Abkhazia – 6-day itinerary

The reason for traveling to Abkhazia is not only political but the country is actually beautiful.

In fact, some Georgians claim that Abkhazia is the most beautiful part of Georgia, one of the reasons why it being taken from them is so painful.

You should also know that, during the Soviet Union, Abkhazia was a major touristic destination for Russians and other people from the Soviet Union and, if Abkhazia had not gotten its independence, today it would be the top resort destination in Georgia, not Batumi.

Map of the places to visit in Abkhazia

Day 1, 2 – Sukhumi

Sukhumi is awesome and, even if you only had 2 days to travel to Abkhazia, I still recommend you come and visit it.

Sukhumi is the capital of Abkhazia, a city that, somehow, tries to be cool among all the abandoned buildings and the Soviet-era stuff.

The center of the city is dominated by the abandoned Parliament, which in the past, used to be occupied by the Georgian authorities and, instead of re-occupying it, the Abkhazians left it there.

Day 3 – New Athos

With nearly 1700 years of history, New Athos is the prettiest coastal town in Abkhazia, with blue-turquoise water and dense green forest that grows near the edge of the water.

New Athos is an actual touristic town and you are likely to see loads of Russian tourists around, but many of them are pretty cool, as New Athos is sort of an alternative destination for the average Russian tourist.

In New Athos, you must climb up to the Greek fortress (200RB) on the top of the mountain, to check some incredible views of the bay.

Views from the fortress

Moreover, the New Athos Monastery is one of the prettiest I have seen recently, really. It was built by monks in the 19th century and is a real blessing to your eyeballs.

Apparently, there is also a very impressive cave but I didn’t have time to go there.

How to get to New Athos from Sukhumi

You can easily reach New Athos on a day trip from Sukhumi and marshrutkas run from the main bus station in Sukhumi. It costs 70RB.

Epic New Athos Monastery

Day 4 – Gagra

Gagra is a very touristic beach town.

I didn’t like it, basically because I grew up in a very similar place in Catalonia, so there was nothing new for me and I would have preferred to have this day to explore the area around Gale.

It is a place to just chill at the beach and eat at the many promenade restaurants so, for solo travelers, it can get a bit boring, especially because there are no people to hang out with, basically because nobody speaks English.

What is interesting about it, however, is that this is the warmest town in the entire Black Sea coastline and apparently, in winter, the temperature is high enough to swim, so Gagra has always been a popular getaway for Russians escaping from their utterly freezing weather.

This is the reason why you see so many strange plants such as exotic cactus and things like that, which is very weird, taking into account that we are at the very doors of the Great Caucasus.

Ah, almost forgot! There is an abandoned Music Club which is worth checking out. Right here: 43.290811, 40.260667.

Stinky smoked fish somewhere in Gagra – Russians love it, as well as people from Central Asia

Get a copy of my Travel Guide to Georgia

This is just one region of Georgia, so if you really want to get deeper into the country, I strongly recommend you get my guidebook, as it contains several itineraries, all my personal travel tips, and in-depth guides to 12 different regions.

Day 5, 6 – Camping at Lake Ritsa

Who would ever say that, at the very shores of this lake, Stalin himself used to spend his holidays in his personal dacha (Russian summer house).

Lake Ritsa was, in fact, a very popular spot for the Soviet elite and, today, you can still visit Stalin’s dacha and, for a few rubles, they will show you the bed where he used to sleep, the toilet where he used to shit and even his personal boat.

The tour is in Russian and nobody speaks English but it was fun enough.

Stalin’s dacha is on the opposite side of the main touristic part of the lake.

Lake Ritsa – Epic

The lake is actually very touristic but this shouldn’t pull you out from coming here because it is pretty big and, like always, people just go to certain areas of the lake.

The place we camped was totally empty, so we had the place for ourselves.

On the second day, we trekked to what is called the Small Ritsa, which is a smaller version of the main lake. It is a half-day trek and we only saw one other group of trekkers.

Alternatively, there are many roads and trails around the lake. With my Russian friends, we explored a little bit around by car and, as you can see in the below picture, Lake Ritsa is a great place for bringing your dog on an adventure

Good morning from Lake Ritsa – This dog followed me the whole day

How to get to Lake Ritsa from Sukhumi

There is no public transportation, so you need to take a taxi or hitchhike.

I hitchhiked and got picked up by two young Russians who I camped with, so I was very lucky.

You can also book a tour from Sukhumi, which costs around 10USD, but I wouldn’t go there by bus, as you will only have a few hours to enjoy the most touristic part of the lake, without time to go to the other side or even trek to the small Ritsa.

Where to stay in Ritsa Lake

We camped but, if you don’t have a tent, there are a few hotels around, none of them budget though.

Mountains around Lake Ritsa

Going back to Georgia

I left the lake at around 1pm, after coming back from Small Ritsa and my Russian friends dropped me off in New Athos, from where I took a marshrutka and the driver dropped on the main road between Sukhumi and the border.

I waited for a lift, crossed the border in just a few minutes and, once in Zugdidi, I took a marshrutka to Tbilisi. I think I arrived around 1am.

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16 comments

Hi Joan, the guide was very nice, however, I think there is a striking error right in the beginning. The referendum you speak about didnt take place in 1993 but in 1991 and, more importantly, Abkhazians didnt made up 53% of the population. They don’t even now, after the majority of the Georgian population have been expelled. Pls check this wiki link, you can find there the results of 1989 census. Where did you find the info that Abkhazians formed 53% of the population before the war?

Hey Dato! Are you Georgian by the way? I met many Georgians with your very same name.

Thank you for your comment and correction. I have re-read the history and the final trigger for declaring independence was in 1992, when Georgia planned to abolish the Soviet Constitution and restore the old Constitution from 1921.

As per the % of Abkhazians, perhaps you are right. I just decided not to mention it, as different sources say different numbers and I am also not mentioning the referendum anymore 🙂

I am from a country which requires a visa for traveling to Georgia and Abkhazia so my question is do i need a visa for Georgia and Abkhazia to travel to Abkhazia or i can just use the Abkhazian permit to travel to Georgia and than Abkhazia?